Toothbrush



E. H. GIBB TOOTHBRUSH Filed April 17,

,4 TTOR/VEY Patented May 27, 1924.

UNITED STATES I 1,495,732 PATENT OFFICE.

, EDWIN H. @133, 0*! N'UTLEY, NEW J TOOTBBR'USH.

- Appllcationnl ed April 11,193. Serial in. 554,221.

It is an object of the invention to provide.

a tooth brush of the aforesaid type which can be very cheaply constructed and which will be generally moresatisfactory in its operation than rotary-tooth brushes as heretofore constructed.

To this end an im ortant feature of the invention resides in t e revision" of a handle member and 0 crating means for the brush so constructe and arranged as to enable it to be readily operated in the manner which best suits the user, and with uniform pressure upon the teeth. I

A further feature of the invention resides in'the revision of improved means for detachab y securing the brush to its operating connections.

Other objects and features of the invention will appear as the description proceeds and will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing in which like reference numerals designate like parts in the various views:

Fig. i is a plan view partly in section of a device constructed in accordance with the invention; 1

Fi 2 is a side view partly in section along the line 2-2 of Fig. '1; Fig. 3 is a view 1n front elevation partly in section along the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a view partly in section, of the brush and the parts with which it is directly connected; I 1 i Fig. 5 shows the rear face of the backing of the brush; and 1 Y I Fig. 6 isia view of-the front'face of the operatin disk for the brush.

The il ustrated device com rises" a brush designated generally by 2, an consisting of bristles 4 and a backing 6 of suitable character, for example,'rubber .orrubber com 1 position. The backing6 is of disk-shape and is carried by an operating disk 8"which slit '32 and is fulcrume to a stud-shaft 12, the bore ofwhich is threaded, as indicated at 14, for engagement with the screw 10. The stud-shaft 12 is mounted and operated in a manner which will be hereinafter fully described.

The backing 6 of the brush 2 is attached to the operating disk 8 by means which enables the brush to be firmly held to the disk but to be readily detached therefrom to allow it to be re laced by a new one when renv dered unsuita Is for further use by reason of wear or other cause. As shown, such means comprises openings 16 in the front face of the disk 8 located at opposite sides of the center of the disk and adapted to receive pins 18 projecting from the rear face of the acking 6. The front face of the operating disk 8 1s also provided with elongated slots 20 ada ted to receive spring clips 22 also projectmg rearwardly from the backing 6. The spring clips 22 are arranged u on opposite sides of the center of the backing and at substantially 90 from the pins 18. The connection between the backing 6 and the disk 8 provided by the pins 18 and openings 16 causes the movements of the operating disk to. be transmitted positively to the brush 2, and the spring clips 22 by their frictional engagement in the slots 20 securely hold the brush2 to the disk 8 while, at the same time, enabling the brush to be very readily withdrawn from or attached to the operating disk.

The frame of the device comprises a drum-shaped casing 24 provided with a depending handle member 26 which, as shown, 1s formed at-its upper end with a flange 28 secured to the right-hand side of the drum casing 24: by rivets or other suitable fastenings 30. As appears most clearly from Fig.

1, the operating race 31 of the brush 2 is,

preferably, closelyadjacent to a plane extending through the axes of the handle will be hereinafter referred to, for the sake of convenience, as the vertical plane of the handle member, inasmuch as the handle member is arranged to be disposed substan'tiallyl vertically in the use of the brush 2. i

Rearwardly of the vertical planeof the handle member 26, thecasing 2 is provided with a peripherally extending slit 32, and an operating lever 3 t gasses through the on a transverse rod 6 r g d athe aasmg 2 adyaoent to the slit. The lever 34 is designed to be operated by a finger oi. the user, and is, ac-

d2 of the handle member 26, so as to enable the handle member 28 to be grasped by other fingers of the hand while the lever 34; is operated by engagement of the index finger with the finger piece 38. By reference to Fig. 3, it will also beseen that the lever 34 above the fin or piece 38 is spaced from the handle portion 26 by a distance such as to enable one or more of the fingers of the user to be interposed between it and the handle member. From the foregoing, it will be understood that the lever 84 may be operated at the will of the user elther by the index finger or any of the other fingers,

to suit his inclination, or to enable him to .avoid the use of a finger which may be with a pinion 58 on a rod 60. The rod 60 passes through a tubular mountin 62 for the rotary brush 2, being journal ed in a partition 64 in the mounting andin the wall at the right-hand side of the casing 24:. At

' its end remote from the casing 24:, the rod 60 is provided with a gear 66 in driving engagement with a ar 68 on the inner end of the stud-shaft 12 which is jolled for rotation in a sleeve 70 integral with a part of the mounting 62 and. extending inwardl therefrom. Preferably, and as shown, suc part is in the form of a. cap 72 threaded into the outer end of the mam section of the mounting. The main section of the mounting 62 maybe formed integrally with the casing 24; or may be secured thereto in any desired manner without departing fromthe principles of the invention.

A- spring 74 has one of its ends secured to the operating lever 34 above its fulcrum point 36, and is secured atits other end at the point 76 to the drum-shap casing 2. The pintle 4:8 is arranged close to and, preferably, slightly forwardly of the vertical plane of the handle member 26, and the rod 60 and mountin 62 are disposed rearwar'dl of said plane. he plane defined by the fu crum rod 36 and the rod 60 is substantially parallel to the vertical plane of the handle meber 2t.

It will also be noted by reteee tn Fig,

3 that the gearing for trsmittin movement from the lever 34: to the driving rod 60 is contained in the drum-shaped casing "24 between the lever 34: and the handle member 26 thereby enabling the space between the lever 34: and the handle member to be made lar enough to receive the fingers of the user without any sacrifice of economy of space in the construction of the device. a If necessary, the gears 66 and 68 may be cleaned by unscrewing the cap 72 from the main section of the mounting 62, then unscrewing the screw 10 from the bore M of the stud-shaft 12 and removing the studshaft 12 from the inside of the cap 72.

Havin fully described the invention, what is c aimed isr 1.. In a device of the class described, a frame, a rotary brush, a handle member dependin 'from the frame, and an operating member or the brush having a finger iece at its lower end terminating at a love appreciably above the level of the lower end of the handle member and being spaced laterally from the handle member by a distance such as to enable a finger or fingers to be passed between said members, so that inthe use of the device the brush may be readily operated either by the index finger of the user or by a finger other than the index finger.

In a device of the class described, a

casing having a handle projecting radially from one side thereof, a mounting projecting from the oppositeside of said casing in offset parallel relation with the casing axis,

a rotary brush journaled upon said mounting, manually operable mechanism for rotatlng said brush housed within the casing and including an operating member projecting exteriorly of the casing, and a driving connection between said mechanism and the brush.

3. In a device of the class described, a casing, a tubular mounting extending from one side of said casing in offset parallel relation to the axis thereof, a rotary brush journaled upon said tubular mounting, operating mechanism for said-brush housed within the casing and said mounting, and an operating member for said mechanism positioned in a plane at right angles to the axis ofsaid tubular support and havin a part projecting exteriorlythrough the rim of the casing.

4. ln a device of the class described, a mounting, a pinion journalled in said mounting, an operating disk detachably connected with said pinion, a brush comprising a hackting member adapted for attachment to said disk, said dislr being provided with openings at opposite sides of its axis, and with slots also disposed at opposite sides of its axis and at substantially from said openings, pins projecting from said backing for 'engagetionally to the disk, and means carried by ment with the openings in the disk for posisaid mounting for operating the pinion. tively causing the brush to partake of the 1 In testimony that I claim the foregoing 10 rotary movements of the disk, spring metal as my invention, I have signed my name 5 clips also extending from the backing and hereunder.

arranged for engagement with the slots in the dlsk, so as to secure the hacking frie EDWIN H. GIBB. 

